Posted in: SYFY, TV | Tagged: SurrealEstate

SurrealEstate Composer on Supernatural Series' Eclectic Influences

Composer Spencer Creaghan discussed evolving the score for the third season, working with showrunner/creator George Olson, and much more.

Composer Spencer Creaghan has accomplished so much in just over a decade of work with a filmography topping over 100 titles across several genres. Some of his best-known works include the Shudder series Slasher, the workplace dramedy Late Night (2019), and Netflix's animated My Little Pony franchise. His latest is the SYFY supernatural series SurrealEstate, which follows the misadventures of Luke Roman (Tim Rozon) and his team as they specialize in clearing and closing haunted houses. Creaghan spoke with Bleeding Cool about how far along he's evolved in the supernatural fantasy series currently in its third season, working with creator George Olson, the inspiration for the series' sound, the most significant thematic challenge, and his personal music influences.

SurrealEstate Composer Spencer Creaghan on His Three-Season Journey on SYFY Series

Bleeding Cool: How do you feel your work has grown in this third season of 'SurrealEstate?'

It's funny you mention that, because I'm working on a piece right now that incorporates some stuff from season one, and it's interesting listening back to a lot of that music. You can see the evolution between who I was and where I am now. My rotation has gotten better, my sense of character has gotten better – [my] sense of mathematical depth, hopefully. There's some interesting stuff I used to do, I'm learning now, and I haven't done it in a bit. It's cool to bring back some of those as well. In general, I have a better sense of "less is more," trying to see what I can do with less rather than trying to pile on everything. I love season one; I was trying to overdo it with themes. This season is much more about what we can use that we've done already and what we can maximize, rather than trying to write something new every single time.

What have you learned working with George Olson as a creator and showrunner, and how does he compare to other creatives you work with?

George is a blessing. I've heard not everyone's first shows go as smoothly as this has, so I'm so thankful for his leadership, mentorship, and sense of storytelling. As a boss and showrunner, he knows how to get the best out of everybody he works with. He knows how to inspire and excite you. He always has what I like to call his "George phrases," where he'll talk about a scene. Back in season one, there's this action sequence at the end of the first episode, and he described it like we're "going off to war."
That was such a great way to describe this moment where the characters weren't going off. That's not what was visually happening, but he perfectly articulated the subtext in a way that it was easy to figure out, He does that all the time, like if ever I'm wondering how to tackle the scene, he uses like a "George Phrase" and all of a sudden, it's like "That's what we're doing" and it makes life much easier when you don't have so much time.

When doing a show like 'SurrealEstate,' are there certain instruments that you lean towards, given the genre you're working in?

My early pitch on 'SurrealEstate' included the word "ancient." I always think about that all the time, about what "ancientness" means. It's bringing in folk music, and so there's a lot of folk instruments within the score for me, and that's been consistent since day one. Whether it's music from Ireland, India, Africa, the Baltics, Hungary, Norway, trying to find some way of bringing the cultures to the score, I found that helped make the music sound not like something you'd hear normally on TV, and it adds this extra level of depth beyond strings and things.

What do you feel are the biggest challenges you encountered this season?

Writing a theme for Death was probably one of the hardest things. Death is a new character, and they are one of my favorite characters in all of fiction. I always loved the idea of Death. I love it in 'Discworld', 'Sandman ', and anything that Bryan Fuller has done, so I'm really connected with that character. Being able to write a theme for them has probably been the hardest, because how do you write something that hasn't been done before? How do you create something that captures this concept of this character?

I went for something a little bit less melodic, a little more atmospheric and textural, but always bringing back this idea of, "Can I capture music that sounds like a flame going out?" What would it sound like to have window shutters and a breeze, and what would that be like as music? A lot of that was, "How can I take a window opening, the air escaping from our lungs, and create a piece of music out of that, but also something a little comforting?" In a way, death doesn't have to be something bad, and in this show, we have all kinds of it. This character of Death takes a more comforting approach, like they want to help you. They want to make sure you're okay and that you'll be good passing on.

What are your biggest music influences in general?

I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks, like John Carey, James Newton Howard, Hans Zimmer, and John Powell. Those are probably the most listened to. Beyond that, I'm a big death metal guy. I love blast beats, black metal, progressive metal, and symphonic metal. I love loud music, and then a lot of folk instruments, like Pagan and Celtic music. I'm a big fan of that, and ironically, 'SurrealEstate' captures all of that in one show.

It puts all my influences into this box, which is why I like it so much. If I need to do some folk stuff, if I've been listening to Heilung or Cannibal Corpse, there's usually room for those influences within the score. Similarly, if I'm listening to some light pop music, there's room for that as well, so I listen to all kinds of things, but folk, metal, and film music tend to be the ones I go to often for inspiration.

SurrealEstate, which also stars Sarah Levy, Adam Korson, Maurice Dean Wint, Savannah Basley, Tennille Read, and Elena Juatco, airs Thursdays on SYFY, and streams the latest season on SYFY.com and the first two seasons on Hulu.

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